Targeted training could improve flight crew performance at the onset of in-flight emergencies, when pilots often are startled yet must rapidly make critical decisions with incomplete or confusing information, according to research by Mike Gillen, Ph.D., a United Airlines Boeing 737 captain and check airman and human factors expert.
Speaking at Flight Safety Foundation’s 70th annual International Air Safety Summit in Dublin in October, Gillen said that incorrect initial decisions at the start of an emergency often result in delayed aircraft recovery and, in some cases, can lead to an undesired aircraft state. He said that accident data indicate that when an incorrect decision is made, the likelihood of a successful outcome decreases, and that recent accidents point to a “rapid degradation” from controlled flight when the crew becomes startled. Many in-flight loss of control accidents were the result of an unusual event at the beginning of the accident sequence.
Yet crews hav…
